India among top 10 price appreciating housing markets

September 8, 2017

The growth in mainstream residential prices in India has landed it a place among top ten international markets in the 12-months to June 2017 according to the Global House Price Index for Q2 2017 by Knight Frank. The country stood 9th among 55 international markets – 13 spots above its position on the index over June 2016. It even bettered the performance over the previous quarter wherein it ranked 13th.

Established more than a decade ago the Knight Frank Global House Price Index allows investors and developers to compare the performance of mainstream residential markets around the world. Compiled on a quarterly basis using official government statistics or central bank data the index’s overall performance is weighted by the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on a Purchasing Power Parity basis and the latest quarter’s data is provisional pending the release of all the countries’ results.

While the overall index was comparison of residential prices up to the June-ending quarter of 2017, in case of 16 countries including India the report considered data until the Marche-ending quarter this year.

At an annual price appreciation of 10.5% India’s residential sector outshined matured markets such as China (9.6%) and did nearly four times better than the price rise recorded in the United Kingdom (2.8%), revealed the report.

Dr.Samantak Das, Chief Economist and National Director – Research, Knight Frank India, said, “The residential sector in select tier two cities such as Kochi, Lucknow and Kanpur have triggered the price growth. However, home prices in most metro cities such as Chennai and Delhi have not shown significant performance.”

Overall nearly 90% of the 55 housing markets tracked on the Global House Price Index witnessed a flat or positive price growth in the 12-month period to June 2017. Iceland topped the index with year-on-year price rise of 23.2% followed by Hong Kong (21.1%). Prices in both the markets primarily strengthened owing to limited supply and healthy surge in demand, the report added.

While Hong Kong emerged as Asia’s strongest market in the 12-month period an analysis of five years puts India in the front, recording an average price growth of 70% edging past 65% price appreciation witnessed in Hong Kong.